LET’S GET IT ON
After a wild and wacky 2023-24 regular season, the Wine & Gold finally tip off the Playoffs on Saturday afternoon – welcoming the Magic to town for Game 1 of their First Round matchup to tip off the NBA Playoffs.
The Cavaliers (48-34) were the league’s hottest squad before the All-Star Break, winning 18 of 20 heading into the halfway point. But injuries cooled Cleveland off down the stretch, going 12-17 in the season’s second half. But the Wine and Gold got hot at the right time, winning two straight last week to secure the Conference’s 4th-seed for the second straight year.
The Magic (47-35) are making their return to the postseason for the first time since 2019-20, trying to win a Playoff series for the first time since 2009-10, coming to town as the East’s 5th-seed. Orlando has gone from 22 to 34 to 47 wins in three seasons since former Cavs assistant Jamahl Mosley has taken the reigns in the Magic Kingdom and have just one player – nine-year vet Joe Ingles – older than 30 years of age.
These two split their four-game set during the regular season, with each squad getting wins on their opponent’s floor. The series continues on Monday night in Cleveland, moves to Orlando for a pair next Thursday and Saturday (also an afternoon contest). If the series goes to five games, it comes back to Cleveland next Tuesday, April 30, back to Orlando for Game 6 the following Friday and on Sunday, April 5 back here if it goes the distance.
FRONT MEN
The future in Orlando lies in its frontcourt tandem of Paolo Banchero – who’s 21 years old – and Franz Wagner – who’s 22.
Banchero ran away with Rookie of the Year voting last season after being taken with the top overall pick and he’s been even better as a sophomore, earning his first All-Star nod, averaging team-highs in points (22.6ppg), rebounds (6.9rpg) and assists (5.4apg). He’s led the Magic in scoring 44 times, in rebounding 27 times and in assists on 42 occasions.
One of his two 40-point games this year came against Cleveland in the first meeting, but the Cavs held him in check after that – combining to average 16.7ppg on 38 percent shooting over the final three.
Wagner is Orlando’s second-leading scorer at 19.7ppg and has posted some big games of his own in his third year out of Michigan – topping the 20-point mark on 33 occasions, with seven 30-point games in the mix.
Wagner was solid in four games against Cleveland this season, netting double-figures in all four games, averaging 16.0ppg in the series.
Evan Mobley played in two of the four games against Orlando this year – averaging 15.0 points and 6.5 boards, shooting 62 percent from the floor. He’ll have to be aggressive on both ends if the Cavaliers hope to eliminate the Magic.
KEEPING GUARD
The Cavaliers backcourt has an offensive edge in this matchup, but the Magic have some tough defenders to deal with.
Donovan Mitchell saved his best for last – averaging 31.0ppg over his last two appearances of the season, both key victories – and was very good in three meetings against the Magic this year, with a 35-point effort in the opener and a 25-point, career-high-tying 13-assist performance in the late February win.
Darius Garland had an up and down regular season overall, but he was rock-solid in three outings against Orlando – averaging 26.7ppg on 51 percent shooting, posting an 18-point, 10-assist double-double in the series finale.
Jalen Suggs, the 5th overall pick in 2021, has developed into one of the league’s most tenacious backcourt defenders, and his skillset will be on full display over the next two weeks. Suggs can also sting foes on the offensive end – tallying double-figures in 53 games, with 11 of 20 points-plus.